


Nerf War

by im_upset_3000



Series: Finding Forever [2]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Jack finds some Nerf guns and chaos ensues, Martha Jones Is a Star, and underappreciated, nerf war, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-27
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-10-17 09:11:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17557520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/im_upset_3000/pseuds/im_upset_3000
Summary: (A chapter that didn't fit in my main fic)





	Nerf War

**Author's Note:**

> If you've haven't read my other story in this series, this won't make any sense but here's the summary of what happened if you don't wanna go back and read it (S3 AU where Rose comes back and they pick up Jack before Utopia): Rose and the Doctor are happily engaged, and Jack and Martha are now "siblings" to Rose and the Doctor, respectively. Also Martha and Rose are friends, because I am 110% in favor of that friendship .

The Doctor was working on a particularly feisty TARDIS repair when he heard a pair of footsteps running quickly towards where he was currently located accompanied by breathless giggles. He sighed before rolling out from under the console and sitting up facing the doorway with a fond but exasperated smile. He had no doubt why whoever-it-was was running, as this had happened several times in the past few hours. After breakfast, Jack had pulled out a dozen assorted Nerf guns from a stash he had apparently put in some back room during his last stay, and the morning had proceeded to become a free-for-all Nerf war spanning the whole TARDIS. The Doctor had stayed out of it, of course, not liking guns in general and having important repairs to make (or so he claimed). But it didn’t stop him from being used as a shield and/or a cover by all three of them, especially the girls.

The footsteps drew closer and the Doctor prepared for the inevitable assault before Rose burst through the entryway red-cheeked and panting, hair in a messy ponytail and missing a weapon. Her head swiveled to either side, looking for something before her eyes latched onto him and she rushed over to duck behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and giggling breathlessly the whole time. Another heavier pair of footsteps came down the corridor towards them, and Jack dashed into the room carrying the most oversized Nerf gun the Doctor had ever seen.

“Doctor, protect me!” Rose squealed from behind him and what was he going to do, say no? Jack swiveled towards them at the sound of Rose’s voice and pointed the gun at the two of them, also breathing hard and having shed his outer layers in favor of a navy blue t-shirt and jeans. 

He hesitated for a moment at seeing the Doctor, then shrugged and unapologetically said, “Sorry, Doc.” But before he could pull the trigger, the Doctor quickly reached into his inner pocket and pulled out a yellow water pistol, shooting Jack several times in the chest and face with a loud exclamation of victory. Jack stood there sputtering for several seconds, the only noise in the room being the constant hum of the TARDIS and Rose’s laughter before speaking.

“Now that’s not fair!” he sputtered indignantly.

“Who said anything about fair?” the Doctor replied triumphantly. Jack snorted and started to respond when a foam dart nailed him in the side of the head and Martha’s laughter came from the hallway followed by footsteps running the other direction.

“Excuse me for a moment,” Jack said before dashing in the direction of Martha’s rapidly retreating footsteps and laughter. They both listened to the pairs of fading footsteps disappear before Rose pulled the Doctor closer to her, hugging him from behind.

“My hero,” she said with a smile, resting her head on his back.

“You should probably take a break, love. You’re been at it for hours now. And drink some water,” the Doctor replied with a bit of affectionate concern. She complied, running a hand down his arm as she passed to go sit on the jumpseat, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms loosely around them. 

“So Doctor…” she started hesitantly.

“So Doctor what?” he replied cheekily.

“So Doctor…” she repeated, with a glare in his direction, “When Jack and I revisited one of the back rooms we used to-”

“-have nerf wars in? Yeah, I found that,” he supplied with an eyebrow raised.

“Yeeeeeah, that one,” Rose affirmed, somewhat embarrassed, “Anyway, I noticed one of my jackets lying in the corner, you know, the one I wore when we went to New New York?” The Doctor’s happy expression fell, and Rose knew that he knew exactly how it got there. She continued, saying, “Anyway, the carpet in the corner was worn down, and…there was a hole in the wall that definitely wasn’t there before.” The Doctor’s eyes dropped to the floor and he kicked at the grating underneath absently.

“Doctor,” Rose said softly, hopping off the jumpseat and lightly padding her way over to him. When she was right in front of him and he wouldn’t look up, she put one finger under his chin and gently tipped it up so his eyes met hers.

“Doctor,” she repeated firmly but still gently, “What happened in there since I was gone?”

“You know how I told you earlier that it destroyed me when you were gone? Well that may have been an understatement. After that encounter with Donna right after you…” he couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence, but plowed on anyways. “I didn’t leave the TARDIS for weeks. I found that room a few days after, still makeshift pillow barriers and foam darts scattered all around, and I spent a lot of time in there. I knew it must have been you and Jack, and, as much as it pains me to admit it, I missed him too. Anyway…one day my anger built up on how it wasn’t fair how everything gets taken from me and I punched a hole in the wall.” 

He reached up to scratch the back of his head in embarrassment and continued, “Yeah the old girl wasn’t too happy about that and decided she’d had enough of me sulking and landed in modern-day London. When I went to see what was happening, she locked all the doors of the rooms, forcing me to go out and do something. Exactly two days later I met Martha Jones, and her being around really helped me bear the pain.”

“And did you ever tell her that?” Rose asked softly, the hand that had been under his chin now on flat on his chest.

He paused for a moment and thought before answering, “No, I guess I haven’t.”

“Well then,” Rose said with a nod towards the door, “You know what you’re doing next.”

“Right,” he said with determination, “I’m going to go find Martha. And thank you, love, for listening.” He leaned down to place a quick kiss to her lips before dashing off into the rest of the TARDIS.  
Jack heard footsteps running towards him and whirled around instinctively, pointing the toy gun at the Doctor who had rounded the corner quickly before stopping dead at seeing the gun and putting his hands up. 

“Woah woah it’s just me!” he shouted, and Jack slowly lowered the gun.

“Why’d you put your hands up?” Jack asked amusedly after a moment, “It’s a toy, it’s not going to hurt that bad.”

“Well...instinct I suppose,” he responded after a moment, “I get real guns pointed at me almost every day, and it’s better safe than sorry. Do you know where Martha is, by the way? I need to tell her how brilliant she is.”

“No,” Jack said dejectedly, “She’s hidden herself really well, I’m impressed and want a rematch. Anyway, maybe we should end this round and do something else for a while.”

“Yeah, Rose is already done. I’ll tell Martha when I find her!” And with that, the Doctor bounded off in the other direction, leaving Jack to shake his head wondering where all that energy came from.

The Doctor found Martha in one of the many storerooms filled with random stuff after tripping over five different makeshift barriers and avoiding the dart that flew past his head when he entered the room.

“Hey, hey! Martha, it’s just me,” he said loudly, putting his hands up in a gesture of peace.

“Oh, sorry Doctor,” came from one of the back corners of the room, and the Doctor walked over to find her cozy spot between a few stacks of storage bins.

“There you are! I wanted to have a chat with you,” he said, grinning infectiously the whole time. 

At this, Martha’s smile dropped and she asked quickly, “Are you dropping me off at home?”

“Of course not, why would you think that?” he asked her back, his smile faded and brows furrowed together in confusion.

“It’s just...you got Rose back, and Jack’s here, and you guys fit so well together and I thought you might not want me around anymore,” she responded, picking at a piece of carpet from where she was sitting cross-legged and leaning against the wall.

“Of course we want you around!” he exclaimed reassuredly, sitting down cross-legged in front of her and putting his hand over hers, “Jack and Rose and I do fit well together, and so do you. You were good friends with Jack before, and Rose thinks of you as a friend already! You’re stuck with us now whether you like it or not. Siblings, remember?” He finished with a smile.

“Yeah, I guess we’re family now,” she replied, managing a half smile.

“And, Martha Jones, what I wanted to tell you is,” he said, continuing, “before I met you I was in a really bad place and you helped me get over that, and made me a better person while you were at it! And you’re brilliant, you really are, and have saved me so many times. Who knows where I would have been without you,” he finished sincerely, his gaze never leaving hers the whole time.

“I don’t know, I think you would’ve been fine,” she said with a dejected sigh.

“I most definitely would not have been.” 

She managed a full smile after that and the Doctor pulled her into a hug. “Thanks Doctor,” she whispered. He pulled away with a smile and helped her to her feet, walking out of the room with her following.

“Jack’s quite impressed with you, by the way. Not many people can sneak up on him like that.”

“Oh is he now?”

“He wants a rematch.”

“So I can beat him again?”

“Oh Martha Jones,” the Doctor said with a smile, “You really are something.”

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell me your thoughts and thanks for reading!!


End file.
